This invention relates to a connecting member and a connector, such as a direct-type lamp socket capable of connecting a lamp tube as a connection object.
Thin lamp tubes such as CCFLs or EEFLs have been used as light sources in backlight modules of large liquid crystal displays. The type that directly irradiates light of lamp tubes onto a liquid crystal panel from its back side is called a “direct type”, which is excellent in light utilization efficiency and thus is optimal for a backlight of a liquid crystal display such as a monitor or a television that requires high brightness.
The conventional direct-type backlight modules have several types.
In one type, a plurality of lamp tubes are disposed at intervals on a metal housing, called a chassis, of a backlight module. Each lamp tube has at its both ends lead wires serving as electrode portions and one end of an electrical cable is soldered to each of the lead wires, i.e. the electrode portions. Each electrode portion is coated with a rubber member at its one end where the electrical cable is soldered. A terminal is press-fitted to the other end of each electrical cable drawn out from the rubber member and is received in a connector housing so as to be connected to a connector mounted on an inverter board disposed on the back side of the chassis. In this manner, the power is supplied to the lamp tubes through the connectors and the electrical cables.
In another type, connectors each comprising an insulator, a terminal portion, and a slider member are mounted on an inverter board. Each connector extends to a lamp tube mounting surface through a chassis to directly connect an electrode portion of a lamp tube at its terminal portion. In this type, by incorporating the lamp tube into the terminal portion of the connector and then operating the slider member, a lead wire of the lamp tube and a contact of the connector are connected together. After the connection, the lead wire is relatively firmly fixed.